Did Cyan indicate that they are, in fact, going to shut down D'mala for sure?

(Did you ever get that invitation to UU, TK?)

Takua-Kaita-600

11-22-2006, 08:13 AM

But why? I mean, I suppose if the Free version had as much accesibilty as UU it would be okay, withought being allowed to access the new content, cause then we could just "migrate." But I don't think they're doing that.<div class="ev_tpc_signature">

http://www.maj.com/gallery/TakuaKaita600/AVSnSIGS/eoa_banner.png
Goodbye, Yeesha. May your journey as the Grower help D'ni's future.

nanoukmetal

11-22-2006, 10:01 AM

Hi Takua-Kaita-600,

One big difference with Uru Live is that people will need a broadband connection, so, unlike in UU, people with dial-ups will not be able to play the free version.<div class="ev_tpc_signature">

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by Takua-Kaita-600:
But why? I mean, I suppose if the Free version had as much accesibilty as UU it would be okay, withought being allowed to access the new content, cause then we could just "migrate." But I don't think they're doing that. </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I feel I should stress something at this point...

Uru Live is an all or nothing situation for Cyan... if it fails to succeed this time, it won't be returning. Ever. And there is a very real possibility that Cyan as a company will cease to exist. As such, Cyan is doing everything it possibly can to direct people to Uru Live. Until Uru is an interim project, and always has been. All of Cyan's resources will be directed towards Live this December, and maintaining a UU shard is an unnecessary drain on those resources. Additionally, because Visitors in Uru Live will only have access to the Cavern (details subject to change...) as a way to whet their appetite for the whole shebang, continuing to publicly provide UU free of charge and enable people to access more content there would be a potential drain on the player base, which Cyan simply cannot afford to risk. Cyan is not looking for a player base of free players, they want - and need to make money off of this venture, and subscriptions are the only way to do that. As such, the actual story content - including the Ages in the ABM Journey - will be pay-only. The biggest reason for that being that the content could change in the future to include new material (To D'ni or Path of the Shell stuff, for example), and providing that for free because the Age is on the ABM path seems like a poor decision.

On top of that, UU is no longer a valid representation of what to expect from Uru Live. Crashes, lag, bugs, obscenely long loading times... none of which will be fixed. If UU continues to remain available free and to the general public, there will invariably be confusion over what's being offered, by whom, and to what end. It's a very real possibility that potential subscribers, seeing how buggy UU is, could be driven away from playing Live.

I understand very well - as does Cyan - the value and appreciation that the community has for UU. It's kept Uru alive and even brought it back from the dead. However, it has fulfilled its purpose as a place to gather until Cyan could bring it back properly. The requirements for the game have not changed in the past 3 years, and participation in UU with dial-up was possible primarily because of the game's static nature... had Uru Live made it through Prologue in 2004, dial-up would have been excluded based on the requirements for continuing to participate in an ever-updating world then just as it is now. Unfortunately, there's little that can be done on that front.<div class="ev_tpc_signature">

----------
Guild of Archivists,
D'niPedia Writers Ring (http://www.dpwr.net) (DPWR.NET)
Uru and Myst Forum Moderator / Community Assistant
Please note: I do not respond to Private Topics dealing with technical support or hint requests for the Myst series